A/N: I'm sorry! I really am! Please don't hate me. I promise, everything will be okay, it'll go back to normal-ish. Just shh and read!
While I wrote this, I listened to 'I See The Light' from Tangled, 'Once Upon A Dream' by Lana Del Rey, & 'Kiss The Rain' by Yiruma. Enjoy!
Emma sighed as she laid her head on her crossed arms. She had been sitting on her balcony day-in and day-out, waiting for Killian to come back.
"Emma?" Her father's voice asked. She turned her head to see him, giving him a sad smile.
"It's been three days, Father... I don't know if he's coming back."
"What do I always tell you about true love?" Charming asked, walking over and resting his arms around his daughter, caressing the back of her head in his hand.
"Something feels wrong." Emma sighed.
"Please don't go look for him, Emma. You could get hurt again."
"I won't."
"I'll send a search party out for him tonight, okay?"
"Okay."
"Don't worry, okay?" Charming asked, to which Emma nodded, "I'll let you be."
Emma nodded, smiling a little when Charming pressed a kiss to her forehead.
She continued to look out over the kingdom, trying to figure out where Killian was. She thought it was odd that he would leave without saying goodbye, and she could still see the Jewel of the Realm docked at the port.
That's when she realized she had to do something.
So, she hurried to her closet, pulling out her riding outfit and slipping out of her dress. She quickly dressed herself, then tugged on her riding boots and took off down the hall.
She ran straight for the stables, hiding a few times from guards. After pausing behind a pillar for a few moments, she tiptoed towards her horse's pen, smiling and petting him as she threw on his saddle and pulled herself onto his back.
"C'mon, boy," Emma spoke firmly, "We've got a lieutenant to save."
The horse darted towards the fields, in the general direction of where Killian usually goes to get back to his ship. She rode along the edge of the woods, searching for any sign of him. She stopped her horse when she saw Killian's hat lying on the ground. Emma lept from her horse, tears threatening as she picked up the lieutenant's hat. She held it to her chest, looking around for any sign of him.
"Killian?" She asked, taking her horse's reigns and leading him forward. There wasn't any further trace of him until she found him lying a few feet away.
"Killian!" She screamed, tears forcing their way out of her eyes. She fell at his side, her hands immediately searching his neck for a pulse. He was definitely still alive.
"Killian, please, wake up!" Emma cried, "Someone, please help!"
Her horse fled at her yelling, causing her to cry harder.
"Killian, come back to me." Emma whispered, setting her hand on the side of his face, "I love you."
Emma sat by his side for what seemed like forever when she heard her father's voice.
"Emma!" He shouted, "What did I tell you?"
She sat up, only to be caught in her father's arms.
"I can't wake him, Father." Emma sobbed.
"Sh... We'll bring him back to the palace, okay? The nurses there will take care of him."
"I can't lose him."
"I know, Emma, I know." Charming whispered.
"I kissed him and he still didn't wake up. I don't know what's wrong."
"Sometimes... Sometimes it's too late." Charming replied, "For now, I need to get more help."
After they brought Killian back to the palace, nurses buzzed around him, concluding that it was a strong sleeping curse.
"He'll need something absolutely incredible to save him." Doc spoke softly, making Emma clasp her hand over her mouth and turn into her father's arms.
"Thank you, Doc." Charming whispered, holding Emma tight.
"What are we going to do?" Emma asked, tears still streaming down her cheeks.
"The nurses are doing everything they can, Em."
"I can't lose him, I can't."
"I know, Emma." Charming whispered, "We'll figure out what's wrong."
"What's wrong is that he's not waking up." Emma sobbed.
"Why don't you go rest for a little while, sweetheart? You're incredibly stressed out."
Emma nodded, leaving her father's arms and walking towards her room. She couldn't help but stop by the infirmary to see him. He laid on the bed, perfectly still, donning a stark white uniform. Emma knew what that meant, causing her breath to catch in her throat. She walked slowly over to his bedside, bending down beside him.
"Killian, I am so sorry." Emma whispered, taking his hand, "I never wanted to see you hurt. I never meant for this to happen. I'll find whoever did this, and... Who am I kidding?"
She sighed and set her head on his chest, tears flowing at the gentle rise and fall of his breaths.
"I don't know how to save you, Killian. But, I know I have to." Emma whispered, "I'll save you."
Sitting up straighter and looking at his peaceful sleeping expression, Emma decided she needed to do something drastic to wake him.
"Killian, you're the first person I've ever loved. You're the first that has truly loved me. Without you, I'm just another princess, another girl. But, I need you, Killian. I need you to be my savior when I fall, I need you to be my hero, I need your love. You have this way about you that screams 'adventurer', instead of simply 'lieutenant'. I want to go with you to far away places, I want to explore everything with you-and I still can. Please, please, Killian. I love you so much. I love you more than anything in the world, anything I could ever dream of. Come back to me, please."
She leaned over him, hesitating to press her lips to his. She was afraid of him not waking, of him staying in this state of living death forever. The room was absolutely silent, aside from their breathing just as Emma pressed her lips to his.
When she did, it felt like fireworks, like a rush of magic exploded from their lips. Tears started falling from her eyes as Killian's hand moved up to hold her head closer as she tugged away.
"Killian." She breathed, setting her head on his chest.
"You saved me." He spoke in a tired tone, a smile gracing his features.
"I saved you." She smiled, letting a small laugh escape her lips as he sat up and pulled her close, "I love you, Killian, I thought I lost you."
"Never, love." Killian whispered in response, holding her closer, "I love you, too, Emma."
"What was—Lieutenant?" Charming asked, prompting him and Emma to pull out of their hug.
"It worked, Father, it worked!" Emma beamed. Charming simply smiled, knowing that this was the right man for Emma, whether he liked it or not (he really did, deep down).
"It's good to have you back, Killian."
"It's good to be back." Killian sighed, "How long was I sleeping?"
"Three days." Emma said, brushing back some of his hair.
"Three days?"
"I thought you had left me." Emma whispered.
"I'll leave you two alone." Charming spoke carefully, backing out of the room.
"Why on Earth would I do that, love?"
"I don't know, but you weren't coming back, and... I thought you had given up."
"On you? Never." Killian smiled, "Savior."
"Is that my nickname now?" Emma smiled.
"It may just have to be." Killian grinned, causing Emma to lean into him again. She had to feel the warmth of his body around her again.
"How did you find me?" Killian asked.
"I don't know. True love, I suppose." Emma said, causing Killian to tug away and smile, pressing his lips to hers without missing a beat.
"I love you." He whispered.
"I love you, too." Emma smiled, leaning her forehead against his.
"You know what this means, do you not?" Killian asked, chuckling at her confused expression, "We're True Love, Emma."
She couldn't even try to stop herself as she flung her arms around him, nestling her head in the indent of his neck.
"We are, aren't we?" She laughed.
"We should celebrate." Killian suggested.
"And how should we celebrate, Killian?"
"I think I've got the perfect idea." Killian smirked.
Killian Jones had a plan.
"Killian, where are we going?" Emma laughed as Killian dragged her through the forest. It was later that evening, and Emma had convinced her parents to allow her to go out with Killian. He had left during the day to go speak with Liam, so Emma missed him.
"I can't tell you, love. You have to be patient." Killian smiled.
"I can't be when you look that excited." Emma smiled, "C'mon, just tell me!"
"Just wait, love." Killian smiled, stopping in his place and turning to her, "Close your eyes."
"What?" Emma asked.
"Just close them. I'll lead you in the right direction." Killian grinned. Emma giggled and closed her eyes, tightening her grip on Killian's hand as he started walking again.
"I'm hoping you have never been to this part of the forest before."
"I've grown up here, Killian, I'm sure I know every-"
"Open your eyes, love."
Emma cautiously opened her eyes to see a multitude of things, each registering differently. First, there was a beautiful, small waterfall that trickled into a stream. There was bright green grass surrounding it, with a small blanket laid over the incredibly plush grass. Candles were lit along the blanket, along with flower petals.
"Are you hungry, love?" Killian asked with a smile, leading her to the blanket. She sat down carefully, still glancing around in awe.
"You did this?"
"With help from Liam and the crew, but yes." Killian chuckled, "Would you like something to eat?"
"Do I even want to ask what you have?"
"It's not much," Killian replied, opening the basket that had been set on the blanket and revealing a bottle of wine and some fresh bread, "But, we aren't staying here long."
"What?" Emma giggled, "Killian, what is going on?"
"Just be patient, love." Killian chuckled, opening the wine bottle and pouring two glasses. He handed one to Emma, making her giggle as he lifted his.
"To True Love." He grinned. Emma laughed harder as she clinked her glass against his, then bringing it to her lips. She kept his gaze as she drank, smiling when she set it down.
"You're ridiculous."
"That's a word for it, I suppose." Killian smiled, setting his hand on hers, "Do you at least like it?"
"Like it? Oh, Killian, I adore all of this. You are absolutely crazy for setting all of this up." Emma grinned, leaning on his side, "I love it."
"I'm glad." He smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
"Killian?"
"Yes, love?"
"I hate to ruin the moment, but… you know I thought I'd lost you, right?" Emma asked, tugging away a little.
"You know I would never let that happen."
"You weren't waking up, Killian." Emma spoke softly, "I… I didn't know what to do."
"Well, whatever you did was right—you brought me back."
"You came back to me." Emma whispered, leaning forward to press her lips against his. She finally found a home for her heart.